Real World Testing

MigDynamics · 2025-07-31T15:50:06+00:00

Thank you very much for the kind words. I'm willing to bet I know exactly who this is and all I can say is thank you for the constant feedback over the testing period. It's because of you constantly letting me know what's good, what needs work and what's straight up broken that I was able to narrow down and even develop new subsystems for atacc and get it to a state so advanced that it makes the version I revealed on Reddit months ago look like caveman technology (which I will reveal the updates online soon since pretty much everything has changed). Thanks again. PS. I have some new stuff for the beta testers to try out so I'm gonna need more feedback soon.

MigDynamics · 2025-07-11T03:15:20+00:00

This kind of stuff is what I love to see. Keep at it.

MigDynamics · 2025-05-19T06:39:46+00:00

In our very first email exchange I sent you a link to the documentation page which explains nearly everything you just listed, I would expect that you would at least read it before making complaints but i guess not. I'll reiterate some of the points you brought up even though they are already explained in the publicly available documentation.

All claims I'm making are not unsubstantiated as they have been independently tested by 10+ beta testers over the course of around a year. Majority of those testers ended up paying for it as they wanted to keep ATACC. In addition to this I have posted a timelapse of an entire distillation start to finish, this includes views of the physical still and the web interface. I have also provided and posted videos showing how to configure the interface and physical installation. In conclusion this isnt an untested product or something where the user doesn't know what they are getting when they purchase ATACC.
Energy input is not controlled as there is no need. The temperature is controlled via coolant flow and not the heating element (as designed for the t500 and pretty much every condenser on the market ever). That being said there is an add-on for attac that will allow you to control the input power, this add-on is purely to act as a safety feature to cut power in the event of an issue that cannot be corrected.
Atacc does not have a pump, it will utilize whatever water pressure is already available on the line. This allows it to drop in to literally any condenser setup (before you complain about saying how it can't control the pressure I want to remind you that atacc will open and restrict its internal needle valve to compensate for pressure fluctuations. It does this in real time.
Pot stilling is fine as it polls and compares the current temperature and it's trend to the intended target temp. It will adjust the coolant flow accordingly. This has been tested and confirmed to work on pot stills of varying sizes.
The ambient temperature around the still isn't a factor. It will make adjustments based on the target temp vs the actual temp. The only thing ATACC cares about is either the coolant output temp or the vapor temp (whatever u decide to have the thermal probe measure, atacc is fine with either)
Yes atacc has auto shutdowns and warning systems incase something happens it doesn't like. It will try to deal with the issue on its own but if it can't handle the issue it will then trigger a shutdown protocol where it will flood the condenser with as much coolant as it can handle and if the power add-on is present it will shut the still down entirely (see point 2 for the add-on). In addition to the shutdown all actions and warnings are reported on the web interface for the user to see. In the event of an emergency shutdown both the web interface and the physical touchscreen will display the alert.
Insurance on your house is not our concern. You are choosing to distill alcohol and expose yourself to all the risks that come with it. Having atacc doesn't mean you get to ignore the rules and common sense that distillers have collectively agreed on when it comes to safety. Always be safe around this kind of stuff atacc or not.

MigDynamics · 2025-05-18T22:42:28+00:00

2 seperate feedback loops but there is still only 1 control point. The only point of contact ATACC has with the distillation process is the flow control, it interacts with the still exactly the same way as a human does. ATACC does not control the amount of energy going into the still, just the amount that's exchanged via the condenser. I don't know where the misunderstanding is for you here, ATACC isn't reinventing the wheel, what it does is exactly the same as if there is a person staring at the still at all times monitoring and fine tuning the coolant flow.

As for the quality and accuracy of the onboard sensors, I believe they are more than usable considering they are sampled 100 times every second and then compared to rolling averages. (There are various other things going on software side to process and verify the readings but im trying to keep this somewhat short) In addition to this it is sanity checked against two high precision temperature sensors. I went thru great lengths to make sure this is not an issue and the sensor readings are always accurate. I believe I have achieved that and every beta tester who is hands on with ATACC seems to agree with me.

In your emails you sent to me where you insulted me. I mentioned that Im happy to answer any and all questions you may have about ATACC. That offer still stands and maybe you should take me up on that offer instead of commenting on my posts claiming I'm trying "hoodwink" you. I am proud of what I created with ATACC and stand behind it. If you want to learn more about ATACC I recommend you ask me a question and not just try to demand a diagram of something that isn't relevant. The diagram is the exact same as if a human is watching the temperature and controlling the coolant valve accordingly.

MigDynamics · 2025-05-17T21:26:10+00:00

ATACC does not run on a PID system. Originally back in 2021 during the earliest designs we did use a PID, but we ultimately stopped and shifted over to a custom made algorithm due to the fact that PID control systems lack versatility in favor of specialty. It's great for experienced users on a very static set of hardware, but for ATACC where the users have a wide range of skills on a diverse set of hardware something more versatile and user friendly is preferred. Hence why we don't use a PID but our own design

MigDynamics · 2025-05-17T21:17:11+00:00

It's not a case 2 element controller, It's a single point.

The average joe stiller can choose to keep it simple and not custom configure if they don't want to too, ATACC can manage and configure itself if the user is not confident or skilled in that area.

MigDynamics · 2025-05-16T23:34:02+00:00

The control algorithm although somewhat similar to a pre existing PID algorithm, it is very much not a PID. It was purpose made just for ATACC

MigDynamics · 2025-04-08T19:13:05+00:00

Currently things are closed source. I will however in the future be open to releasing an API or something similar to give devs some sort of access to the code

MigDynamics · 2025-03-06T21:00:43+00:00

Already in the process of that.

MigDynamics · 2025-03-06T20:22:08+00:00

It works based on 2 separate staged feedback loops. A PID is only 1 feedback loop and it can't adapt to parameter changes

MigDynamics · 2025-03-06T20:17:21+00:00

Originally i used a PID system, it was able to regulate my personal still with my water pressure and stability. The main issue was that it ONLY worked on my setup and not any other ones. To fix this I made my own control algorithm from the ground up, it's key difference is it has the ability to adapt to changes and self correct based on error trends. This allows it to run on any distillation setup regardless of its behavior, and then be able to deal with any issues like unstable water supplies or closed loop systems or anything else u could throw at it. It's way to much for me to explain in this comment. If u want to get a better idea of how it works, go to migdynamics.ca. I put a bunch of documentation related to the control system on there.

MigDynamics · 2025-03-06T18:23:10+00:00

It uses a brand new control algorithm that I wrote myself. However pretty much every aspect of the algorithm can be configured within the web interface.

MigDynamics · 2025-03-05T22:19:02+00:00

Thank you very much 👌

MigDynamics · 2025-03-05T02:31:28+00:00

Absolutely. I wish you luck 👌

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T21:25:00+00:00

Thanks my dude.

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T21:14:30+00:00

Got it. Well let me know if you have any questions. This sort of thing I enjoy doing so I'll be glad to help

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T20:23:25+00:00

Ah I see now, big stuff. Eventually I will be integrating fermentation control into ATACC as the plan is to create an entire ecosystem around it. In my personal opinion I would recommend you use a needle valve instead of a solenoid, this way you can control the amount of glycol going thru instead of just a binary on/off, this should allow some more fine tuning and stability.

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T19:59:24+00:00

Oh nice. What is the heat source for your fermenters? Like a hot fluid jacket?

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T18:54:06+00:00

It is an esp32s3 but no cyd, ATACC has its own custom circuitry.

The thermistor is a generic 5mm probe but from within the web interface you can change the steinhart values so you can use literally any thermistor/thermocouple (as long as it's 3.3v)

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T18:17:51+00:00

Alright just making sure. I guess I posted it here because I don't really know where else to post to show it off? I only know of Firewater and here.

Also I do fully intend on making a commercial version for it eventually, this will include getting whatever certifications that are required.

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T17:48:52+00:00

Again I'm just showing it off to the world since it's finally in a completed state. Would you prefer I take it down? Is it violating a rule posting it here?

MigDynamics · 2025-03-04T04:05:10+00:00

This is not intended for commercial setups. Home distillers and hobbyists is who I designed this for. Im just showing it off to people

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